CALEB NICKERSON
OTTER LAKE Feb. 15, 2019
On Friday night, the outdoor rink at the Otter Lake RA was transformed into a disco, complete with flashing lights and a DJ, for the grand opening of the youth centre in the town.
The new chapter of Maisons des Jeunes (MDJ), an organization that hosts after school and lunch-time activities for local students, opened with much fanfare, as several dozen teens and young families came out to mark the occasion.
Spearheaded by MDJ coordinator Desiree Tremblay Giroux, the new centre will offer similar programming to the chapter in Shawville, which is based out of Pontiac High School.
“I started working on it back in December,” she said. “This is almost the same thing as Shawville, but it’s in Otter Lake so there are different characteristics, because the youth are different and the needs are different. “
Tremblay Giroux said that she would be assisting the new Otter Lake coordinator Shannon Lasalle and that the new group has been gaining popularity.
“I can’t take an average [attendance] yet because we’ve been open four or five evenings so far, and it’s just growing,” she said, noting that they had 27 youngsters out during Wednesday’s snowstorm.
Tremblay Giroux was excited for the new project and listed off a host of plans for the March break programming.
In a press release, MDJ director Stéphane Durocher thanked the municipality for their collaboration and the coordinators for their work with the youth.
